Here comes Fall. That 2002 Chevy Prizm sitting in our garage was rated 41mpg highway and 36 city back when we bought it, and now has 107,000 miles on it. Following collisions with other vehicles, insurance funds paid to have it fixed, worked upon, hopefully it will be fixed for good this time so we don’t have to shop for a vehicle to replace it this year. But the Prizm was the more recent model of our two gas powered vehicles, and the one that typically sits in the garage when I take the bike to school. When that happens it is often used for shorter trips by our teenager (refer back to the third sentence.) When looking for a more nimble car to replace our older van, something that will go through snow drifts on Winter mid night midwifery calls, it seems the gas mileage plummets.

The 2000 Honda Odyssey van that we want to replace doesn’t get as many miles per gallon (rated 18/26 mpg), and we would like to improve things when moving to a smaller car with better handling characteristics. But it seems the best we can do in a wagon is 20/26 for the Subaru Outback. Wouldn’t you expect that the technology would have improved gas mileage more in a decade? There is an electric SUV promised by Phoenix Motorcars in 2008 that can be pre-ordered now, if you bypass your browser’s security. I’m not sure it is the best choice since the Amish families who live about an hour’s drive away don’t have electrical outlets to plug it into, and it is supposed to go up to 100 miles. That is close. Maybe tow a trailer with a gas powered generator? Or maybe move a bit closer to Amish territory.

It would be tempting since EESA created a tax credit for vehicles that have at least four wheels and draw propulsion using a rechargeable traction battery with at least four kilowatt hours of capacity. For 2009, the minimum credit is $2,500 and the credit tops out at $7,500 to $15,000, depending on the weight of the vehicle and the capacity of the battery. If only we could buy that vehicle this year.

I keep thinking about that Chevy Prizm, and how far 5 people can go on a couple of hundred dollars. At the time we purchased it, I figured the Toyota Prius would have to save us more than 10 miles per gallon to be worth the $10,000 more it cost back then. Even though the new Honda Insight’s 40/43 improves significantly on the Prizm’s city driving mileage, it is mainly due to regenerative braking and still sacrifices winter driving. We’re looking for efficiency and capacity in a vehicle that handles winter roads. I seem to remember that the old Volvo wagons had better mileage, but I guess they’ve become a luxury car with all of the power to go with it. Too bad so many people associate their own power with the drivetrain of their automobile.